Wednesday 6 October 2010

Canadian Orthodox Archbishop under investigation for allegations of sexual misconduct involving boys

Yet another one, as reported by Canadian Press on October 6, 2010:

WINNIPEG - A Canadian Orthodox archbishop is being investigated on allegations of sexual misconduct stemming from more than 20 years ago when he was a priest in Winnipeg.

The Orthodox Church in America (OCA) says in a news release that Archbishop Seraphim of Ottawa, the head of the church's Canadian archdiocese, asked for and was granted a three-month leave as of last Friday.

The archbishop, 64, had posted a letter on the archdiocese's website last week suggesting the reason for his leave was health issues.

"Having also seen my physician, I was informed that this leave is rather overdue," he wrote. "It is my intention and hope to maintain as much solitude and silence as possible."

But the subsequent release from the church, posted Friday on their website, stated otherwise.

"I have blessed the church's office for review of sexual misconduct allegations to work in conjunction with the Canadian police authorities," said Metropolitan Jonah, speaking on behalf of the church...

...Melanie Sakoda of the U.S.-based Survivors' Network of Those Abused by Priests, or SNAP, said her group has been urging the church to investigate the allegations for some time.

"We heard two years ago that a clergyman had filed a written report alleging that incidents took place more than 20 years ago," she said in an interview from Moraga, Calif...

...She said her group's understanding is that the allegations involve pre-teen boys.

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